My son just turned 1. He eats solids well and drinks water from a sippy. We are trying to introduce whole milk but he doesn't seem interested. I want to continue breast feeding until he drinks more milk and preferrably until the new year...after Christmas travel.
My question is the last week or so he wants to nurse for at least an hr in the morning and frequently during the day if we are home. If we are out he rarely asks to nurse. Do you think my milk supply is drying up? Or is he just going through a needy phase? He only goes to childcare a few hours a week so he gets plenty of mommy time.
This started about a week after he started wanting to drop his morning nap or move it later which of course runs into afternoon nap. So some days he is extra tired.
We're still adjusting and he's still nursing. I'm trying to be more patient.
For all of you who suggested giving expressed milk w/ cow's milk. Thank you, but I don't have expressed milk on hand and with extra nursing I don't really want to spend time now to pump. I am trying to mix cow's milk with drinkable yogurt as he seems to like that.
I would say it is a combo of it being a stage and the less sleep he seems to be getting. I wouldn't stress. If you want to make the milk easier for him to adjust to, start by mixing it 3/4ths breast milk to 1/4 milk, and over time slowly increase the ratio until it is all milk. That is what worked well for my boys (only we used formula since that was what my boys were used to).
It could be many things, a growth spurt, teething, mild illness.. It could also be that your cycle is about to come back. My friend has a temporary drop in supply the day before she starts her period. Milk is a supply and demand thing and shouldn't dry up unless you stop nursing. Keep at it, my feeling is that everything will go back to normal in a couple of days.
From my experience.. I nursed my first son for 3 years and didn't lose my milk completely until months after he stopped nursing.
Good luck
I would really encourage you to keep breastfeeding as long as he wants to (which could be 2 or 3 or 4 years old - the World Health Organization recommends nursing for at least two years; mine nursed till they were 2-1/2 & 4-1/2 years old). Breastmilk is still the very best food for him, with perfect nutrition, immunity factors, etc., not to mention the benefits of the special closeness involved in breastfeeding. Contrary to dairy industry propaganda and misinformed doctors, cow's milk is not at all a good food for human beings and causes many many health problems in the short and/or long term (and I'd say your son is very smart to reject it!). I'd encourage you to enjoy the special relationship you have with your son and not cut it off prematurely. If you're getting pressure from people to wean, I'd suggest contacting La Leche League for support and information. A good classic book is Mothering Your Nursing Toddler.
Probably a developmental stage for him. He might also be ready for a growth spurt and be trying to up your supply. If you're consistently nursing, it's unlikely for your milk to dry up.
I would say it's just a stage. Like another mom said you may be experiencing a drop in supply if your cycle is coming back. Or if you dehydrated at all (which often happens in the winter). Try increasing your water intake and just go with the flow. I'm sure you'll see an improvement in his nurseing pattern in no time. A great site for all things nursing is kellymom.com. My son went back to nursing like a newborn right around the time he turned one. Now that he's almost two he is nurseing a lot in the morning and at night but not much through the day. Everything I've read has pointed to this being a pretty normal pattern for them to go through. Hope this helps.
You don't say, but have you pumped and fed breast milk from a sippy cup? If not, you should probably try to pump during the day anytime he goes longer than 3 to 4 hrs between nursings. I've heard of people starting out with all breast milk in a cup and moving to add whole milk a tablespoon at a time until eventually what their child gets is all whole milk and they're used to the taste.
I've not heard of anyone doing this so consider this an idea from an inexperienced mom. We weigh babies when they're first nursing to see how much milk they're getting. Perhaps he's in a growth spurt and needs more milk. Perhaps when he's out he's too interested in other things to nurse. Could you weigh him before you feed him and then again afterward so that you would know how much he's getting?
Another bit of info that may not be related. I feel more hungry when I'm especially tired. I have a small snack and take a nap or go to bed for the night. I've been told that the hungry feeling is our body telling us that we need something for more energy. We recognize the message as hunger when it may be sleep that we need.
My daughter went through a phase just after 1 where she had a lot of separation anxiety, and wanted to nurse ALL the time when I was around. My milk supply was fine, it was all about her emotional needs. :) She nursed until 2.5.
